The return of the Ferris Wheel

A very seasonal post, that you may be tired of: the Ferris wheel... Every year in November they install it on the place de la Concorde and they leave it until March. When you're on top, it's probably the best view on the Champs Elysées and beyond that you can have of Paris. That is if you're not afraid of heights of course, like me ;-( As you probably guessed this photo was taken from the Tuileries gardens.

Season decor

Here is another view of the Winter Ferris Wheel that they install in the Concorde gardens every year. I took it from the Hotel Meurice on rue de Rivoli, where they covered all the pillars in front of the hotel with pine branches. The owner of  this wheel has been in the news lately; he's accused of hiding the income he gets from the wheel from the government...  

An evening in Paris

I had a drink not far from Place Vendôme yesterday evening and on the way back home I came across the Westin hotel, which is currently beautifully decorated. On each side of the entrance there are two stunning chandeliers that I could not help but take a photo of! Paris is surprisingly busy at the moment, but everyone is in a very festive mood, which is very pleasant!

No more food please!

I'm glad the Christmas celebrations are over for, as much as I love family reunions, I hate to have to stuff myself in such a small timeframe! Food plays a large role in the French culture as you know it and it plays an even larger one on big occasions like Christmas... Most of the time you get to eat foie gras, turkey and buche (a typical Christmas dessert with the shape of a log). But more and more people tend to break away from tradition and serve "lighter" food like fish. I won't tell you what I had on Christmas eve AND on Christmas day, but one thing is sure, I can go without eating for the next month LOL. Hope you all have a wonderful time if you celebrated it. Time to go home now!

Even the walls say it!

"Walls have ears" was a common message during WWII, now they have messages for you! Hence this merry christmas wishes that I found on a big scrap chalkboard that they recently installed on the left bank they turned into a pedestrian area. How appropriate for today's post ;-) I wish you a Joyeux Noël everyone, even if you don't celebrate it!

Christmas eve...

Yes, it's a ferris wheel, yes it was installed there especially for Christmas, and no, I did not take this photo in Paris, but in Nice, where I'll be spending Christmas with my family... It's so beautiful that I don't resist posting this photo on PDP, even though it's 930 kilometers (578 miles) from Paris! I wish you a very good Christmas eve, if you celebrate it

Worse than the metro at 6 o'clock!

In French, when we want to say that a place is really crowded, we say "c'est pire que le métro à 6 heures du soir"! (Worse than the metro at 6 pm!) and that is exactly what I felt like yesterday when trying to buy presents on one of the many Christmas markets that we have in Paris at the moment. Totally incredible... I stayed no longer than 10 minutes;-) And today I'm off to Nice for a little break at Le Douzy, hoping it will be more quiet and that I can continue my Christmas shopping more peacefully;-)

Playing around Christmas...

I know it's a bit childish, but since there are Christmas tress all over Paris at this time of the year, I felt like playing a little bit! I don't know if you managed to recognize the large building in the background on the left, but you could "easily". It's simple Le Louvre (well one side of the Louvre), that I took by reflection from the Saint Germain de l'Auxerois church side. Look at the sun too, we've had this weather for so many days now, it's fantastic!

Cartier building

I don't know if you remember my post from last year (Cartier without Bresson), well they did it again this year! Only this time you get to see a broader view (but do visit the previous post to as you might want to see the little film they made for their 165th anniversary again). BTW there seems to be a special 50% off promotion on Zazzle today with code 50OFFPRODUCT, if you're interested in purchasing a ParisDailyPhoto calendar (either this one, or this one or even the brand new black and white one), it may be the day!

Christmas windows

You know I try to avoid showing faces on PDP and especially the ones of children. But in this photo I don't think any of the kids are recognizable, and the one leaning on the windows looks so fascinated that I don't resist posting it! I took it at Le Printemps, where, like every year, they have beautiful Christmas windows that children love (I remember how much I used to love this when I was a kid!) . I thought this was a cool way of starting the week.

Bye-bye Santa!

I'm just back from a very traditional Christmas with one part of my family and well, even though it's always exhausting (food, food and more food!), it's always a pleasure to take some time of with people who are dear to you. Now is the time to go back to reality! I hope you had a good time too and that Santa (le père-noël !) was good to you ;-). Here is a photo I took in Montmartre where they have a Christmas market. 

Nativity Scene

I bet the title of this post probably surprises you, and though this is... a nativity scene that I photographed at the Madeleine Church. And before you think this is crazy or even Blasphemy, think twice: it was created by artist Gaetan Duthu and scenographer Pierre Bourgois who imagined what it would be like if the Christ would be born today. Television networks would certainly play a large role, wouldn't they? I personally love it. More photos here.

Last minute shopping

Today in Paris, probably like in all Christian tradition countries, was a real nightmare. The streets were packed, the traffic was terrible and the stores were buzzing with extremely anxious people desperate to find a last minute gift for their family reunion of tomorrow and the 25th! I was one of them... But on top of that I had to take a few shots of Paris LOL! Here is one I took in a passage I visited near the  Madeleine called Cité Berryer. I wish you all a very good Christmas - a little in advance, I know, but for once that I'm early LOL!

Santa Lucia concert (Swedish church)

There are about 10 million Swedes in the world. Some of them are in France and in Paris in particular where you can find many things Swedish, like the wonderful Swedish Institute in Le Marais or... the Swedish church at rue Médéric, (Svenska kyrkan) where I happen to have attended a Christmas concert 2 days ago. It was really stunning, even though I did not understand a word of what they were singing! Of course I could not help but shooting like crazy. See for yourself (and enjoy the soundtrack!)

Christmas is definitely over...

Like every year people get rid of their tree (I got rid of mine yesterday!). I already explained here that a lot of people simply throw them out of the window after, they've checked that nobody is at risk (hopefully). All this to avoid putting needles everywhere in the staircase and even though you're supposed to bring it to a recycling spot.! Walking down the streets of Paris after Christmas can be dangerous LOL. And before you ask I did like everyone ;-)

Last Christmas decorations...

Pretty soon all Christmas decorations will be gone, so let me show you one last one. I found it at the Hotel de ville (town hall) - and not in the court yard of the Louvre Museum, where they also have pyramids! - Beautiful isn't? Nothing else to add - except that maybe I should think of taking down my Christmas tree now... ;-)

White trees

Here are some more Christmas decorations... You can see them almost everywhere in Paris at the moment and they look pretty cool and festive, especially towards the end of the day when it starts getting dark... And who had this "brilliant" idea? A chic clothing chain store? The Paris town hall? A plant store? All wrong! It's Mc Donald's of course LOL! For the record, I took this photo at lunch when... Yes, when I grabbed a Chicken Ceasar salad at a Mc Donal'ds restaurant near me!

Mini Karl

Thank you very much for all nice words after yesterday's post, I wish they could lighten my friend's sorrow... The show must go on they say, so here is a view of one of the Christmas windows of Le Printemps (one of the main department stores in Paris) that I took last evening on the way back from a dinner with friends. It shows a bunch of mini Karl (Lagerfeld) in various situations. Really funny!

Merry Christmas 2011!

Original? Nope! Seasonal? After all traditions aren't that bad, are they?! While you see this photo I'll be filling my stomach with unnecessary fattening food and exchanging gifts with people who already have everything! But I'll also be surrounded with a lot of people I love, so it's well worth it! Again, have a great Christmas eve everyone (for those of you who celebrate), watch for your stockings (if you haven't been naughty of course...) and come here and let us know what Santa brought you;-) I will... BTW I took this photo at the entrance of my gym. If you notice, someone stuck a "Merro" on top of the "Merry" sign. I really wonder what that means...

Christmas market

I think I have never shown that many times the Eiffel Tower on PDP than this past month! This time it's from the side of the Trocadero, where, on top of the ice rink, they also have a marché de noël (Christmas market)  where you can find anything from Russian dolls to gluewein and French cheeses! Always a great success, and the presence of the iron lady in the background adds a little flavour to it. Last days to complete your Christmas shopping everyone... Mine's completed (99% online this year!)